Born Anew: Relinked
by OrphOfTheAbyss
Summary: "Rage. Rage against the dying of the light." Thrown into a world he doesn't understand, a world that, impossibly, seems to be so like a game he played, long ago. Orpheus will need to learn, adapt, and grow. But he cannot do it alone, and should he fail, all will turn to ash. Before the Light can fade, Relink this dying fire.
1. A Step into the Unknown

_**AN: Hello there. Welcome to Born Anew: Relinked. For those of you that do not know, this is a reboot of a previous story I've written. I'm not proud of it, and here I will take many measures to change and fix my story, so my actual good ideas and decent writing skills can show.**_

_**Let's not delay any longer. Take a seat, get a drink, and enjoy.**_

Chapter Zero - A Step into the Unknown

The dark caverns that stretched out, lit only by the shining moonlight that streamed through the cave entrance, seemed like a gateway to another world entirely. The feel of old, sturdy stone underfoot, the soft whistling of wind as it glided in and out of the dark abyss, the steady, echoing drip of water, collecting somewhere in the shadows.

The man that stood at the entrance to the cave let out a soft breath, flicking on his torch as he cast blue eyes around, glimmering with curiosity.

"Looks like the source was on the money." He muttered, grinning a little. "Damn... looks like no one's come here in a long time..."

The man stood, slightly shorter than average height, a simple shirt and jeans combo hanging loosely on his lithe frame, heavy duty boots crunching on the pebbles and gravel as he stepped forward, brushing a lock of curly brown hair out of his glasses-covered eyes.

"Still, I'm glad I brought a torch." He muttered, chuckling to himself as he cast the light around, looking at the smooth, worn walls of the cave entrance. "It'd suck to have to go all the way back now."

He stepped inside, curiosity to explore and the desire to discover driving him into this unexplored place, far from the nearest town.

He was a student, attending a college in his hometown as he studied psychology. A strange thing to find, a psych student out exploring caves. But he had always thirsted for this, for exploring abandoned, unknown places. To sink into the solitude, only himself for company as he discovered and discovered.

The tunnel went on, and on. The light of the moon long since faded, only the sharp beam of light from the torch illuminating the abyss before him. But he didn't mind. He liked the dark, liked the quiet.

He reached out and ran a hand over the walls, noticing the soft, almost entirely faded engravings, written in a language he couldn't understand, even if he could see them completely. Excitement built in his chest, smile working its way onto his lips.

He was onto something. Something interesting.

With renewed determination, the man kept walking, and walking. Time seemed to slip away from him, the dark bleeding into everything around him. His eyes, refusing to adjust, his breath, refusing to slow. The quickening of his pulse, the excitement pumping his blood, audible in his ears in the raw, peaceful silence.

All at once, it shattered.

The man yelped and fell backward as a growling, savage sound lept out at him from the shadows ahead of him, causing him to swat wildly with his heavy torch.

A heavy thump and a yelp entirely not his own followed, and he flicked the torch around just in time to watch a dog, mangy and wild, run out the way he had come.

Silence came again, and he chuckled.

"Figures... scared by a wild dog..." He muttered, putting a hand to the nearby wall to steady himself as he rose.

Only for the wall to slid away under his touch, causing him to fall through the now open doorway with another yelp.

"Oww..."

He grimaced as he picked himself up, checking himself over for any injuries. Finding none, bar a few scrapes and bruises, he stood up and looked around.

He had fallen a good way down... The air was different here. Mustier. He walked over and picked up his fallen torch and flicked it on, looking around.

His eyes went wide as he saw the ruins.

Fallen, crumbling stone. Rusted metal, scorched fabrics. Extinguished torches, warped by fire. In fact, it looked as if nearly everything had been touched by sudden, powerful flames.

He looked around, drinking in every detail as he approached the center of the room, feet sinking into thick, old ash that had gathered around a single thing.

A warped, rusted blade, twisted on itself, plunged into the center of the ashen ring.

The man pulled his phone out, taking a few photos of the sight, before approaching it, entranced by the odd design.

The sword was clearly warped by flames, like so much in this strange, sealed off room. Something was different about this, though...

He reached out slowly, wanting to feel the rusted, worn handle of the blade, but as he did, a the base of the blade, a spark ignited.

"Wha-"

He didn't even get enough time to finish a single word, as the flames suddenly exploded upward, the heat rising and consuming the blade, reaching out toward his outstretched hand.

Even as he began to pull his hand back, the flames had raced forward, swarming up over his hand and covering him.

He screamed, more out of fear than of pain as he fell backward, the flames hot, so, incredibly hot, but not burning him.

_Chosen... Arise..._

"What...?" The man groaned, mind beginning to shut down, darkness claiming his sight.

_**Arise, my other...**_

"Who... what...?"

The two voices resonated in his mind, so different, so at odds, yet both within him.

_You must..._

_**You will...**_

"Rest for now. And see what comes next."

The soft, comforting voice. A voice that was not his own, nor one of the new, powerful voices. In that voice, the man chose to trust.

He closed his eyes, and let his mind fall. Rest for now. And hope that he wakes up.

* * *

In another place, a hollow, snow covered hell, where undead are sent to go mad, one cell is suddenly occupied.

A new inmate, a new face, a new soul. One out of place, one entirely foreign.

And one that holds this worlds fate in his hands.

* * *

_**AN: And so ends Chapter Zero, pure set up for the beginning of the story. I hope you enjoyed it, and if you feel so inclined, please leave me a review. And if you are here from the original Born Anew, let me know. I'm curious how many people are sticking around.**_


	2. Light

_**AN: Wow... honestly, wow. Thank you guys for the overwhelming support on Chapter Zero, it still blows me away weeks later. I woke up to THIRTY SIX notifications for this story, and the support is honestly heartwarming.**_

_**Thank you, with all my being.**_

_**Now, all I can do as a thanks, is let this story continue on.**_

_**Enjoy.**_

Chapter One – Light

"Wake up. Please, its time."

I jolted awake, my startled breath drawing dust and grim into my lungs, leaving me coughing as I rolled over, my whole-body aching.

What... what happened?

I sat up, slowly blinking away the last vestiges of drowsiness, and looked down at my hands. In them, a soft, strange doll nestled, gripped like my life depended on it.

"Did I... grab this in my sleep?" I muttered, before pulling it close and tucking it into my jeans, the small doll fitting easily.

While the strange doll was odd, this place was... more attention-demanding.

I looked around at what could only be described as a jail cell. I'd seen a few ruins that looked like this, even a few run-down prisons, but none this neglected and decrepit.

I got to my feet, a little shaky, and made my way over to the door. A simple, rusted iron gate that definitely didn't look like something I could just knock down.

"Hello?!" I called out, the dark corridor not revealing anything. "Anyone there?!"

Nothing. I strained my ears to listen for something, just any sound of life, and very distantly, I could hear what sounded like thumping.

Something large, stomping. One sound after another.

I closed my eyes, letting out a long breath.

"...I need to get out of here..." I muttered, opening my eyes and adjusting my glasses as I looked around. There was a gap in the roof... if I could get up to it, I might be able to climb my way out.

I walked over to the wall opposite the gate, testing the brickwork to see if there was enough to work with.

"Of all the things to not degrade..." I muttered, glaring at the wall. While it was far from perfect, there weren't enough footholds on any of the walls to climb them safely, and the last thing I needed was to break my leg and lose any chance of getting out of here.

I pulled my phone out, checking to see if I had any reception, and of course not.

"Figures." I grumbled, switching the phone off to preserve battery and sitting down, sighing as I rested my head against the wall.

What other options did I have? People would come looking for me eventually... right?

I snorted, thinking of my classmates, people who wouldn't care if I went missing on my little expeditions. My friends wouldn't come looking for my either, since they were whole countries away, only contacting me through the internet.

"Although I'd like to think they'd come if they knew I was locked in a cell, somehow..." I muttered to myself dryly, before chuckling. "Great, already talking to myself."

I don't know how long I sat in the cell, honestly. I know it can't have been long, but I got lost in my own thoughts, pondering how I even got here.

The last thing I remember was... touching that sword.

Or at least, trying to.

I winced at the memory of the flames, the voices, the encroaching darkness, then the kind, soft voice of a woman.

Who was she? The other voices... they were so oppressive, demanding, but hers...

I shook my head, laughing at myself.

"Delusions don't make sense." I said. "No point in lingering on them."

But the very real question was, why after I passed out, did I wake up here? I couldn't remember any old prisons in the region, so...

"Where am I?"

* * *

It's been at least a day. The sun went down, and while I enjoy the dark, it took everything I had to resist the urge to turn my phone back on for a light source. The noises... they seemed to get louder in the dark, and I swear I heard low moans several times in the night.

This place... I have no idea where I am, but I need to get out. Before I go crazy here.

Now in the light of the next day, I reassessed the room. Still no obvious way out, but there has to be something. I gripped the bars of the gate, and put all my strength into pulling them down, but all I succeeded in doing was getting rust all over my hands.

"Shit..." I muttered, glaring at the gate before kicking. "God dammit!"

I slumped against the nearby wall, mind trying to come up with... something. Just SOMETHING.

"...are you sane?"

I shot up away from the wall, eyes spinning around to find the source of the new voice, before looking up. I shielded my eyes from the sun, seeing... what looked to be a knight in armor.

Familiar looking armor too.

"...Wait, am I sane?" I repeated, realizing he was waiting for an answer. "Yes! Yes I am, very! Could you get me out of here?"

The knight, or LARPer, or whatever, seem to tilt his head a little, before throwing down something into the cell.

"Good luck." He said simply, and left.

"W-Wait! I... dammit." I cursed, hearing his armor clunking away distantly. So much for that...

I looked down, picking up what he dropped, and my eyes went wide as I realized it was a large key-ring, closer to a loop than a ring, and it had a rusty, old key on it.

"Yes!" I exclaimed, running over to the door and sliding the key into the lock on the other side of the door, and breathed a sigh of relief as the door unlocked with a satisfying clunk.

"We out." I muttered, grinning as I opened the door, taking care to carefully walk out into the dark corridor. I slowly stepped forward, seeing cells on either side of the corridor as well, all empty. I was clearly in some sort of wing, maybe even an underground one if that guy had been running around above me.

That or he'd gotten that ridiculous armor up onto the rooftops.

Eventually the corridor changed, the right wall falling away into rusted bars into a large, underground area. I walked up to the bars, looking inside curiously, before suddenly falling backward as... something, looked at me.

I yelped, falling backward against the wall as beady red eyes look in at me, teeth larger than my torso lining a large maw that opened, steaming putrid breath billowing out as it growled at me.

"What the hell... is that...?" I muttered, fear settling down and replaced with incredulity. "That... can't be real, can it?"

The creature didn't seem to understand me, just growling and slamming a giant hand into the bars, but they didn't budge. The creature seemed to grow annoyed and tired of me, as it turned away and went back to pacing.

That stomping noise... was this thing?!

"I need to get out." I muttered, getting up and trying to resist the urge to throw up. "I need air... and to get away from whatever the hell that is..."

I jogged away, down the hallway and out into a circular room with a rusted ladder, with sunlight streaming down from above.

"Finally."

I climbed up and exited out into a spacious courtyard, breathing clear, cold air as I grinned and leant against a pillar.

"Oh god, it feels like I've been in there for months..." I joked, stretching as I did. "Now... where the hell am I?"

The snow was odd enough, definitely out of season, and I walked into the center of the courtyard to find another of those odd swords.

"This thing again..." I muttered, reaching out to the rusted blade, and flinched backwards a full meter when the flames sparked at the base of the blade, but unlike before, they didn't explode into a consuming inferno.

They just stayed low, but warm, and comforting.

"...screw it, not gonna look a gift horse in the mouth." I muttered, sitting down at the strange fire, relaxing into a calming warmth, contrasting nicely with my tired body and cold air.

I took the time to look up, seeing snow covered peaks nearby, and the air was relatively thin.

"Maybe I'm just at the top of the mountain." I theorized. "But then, how did I go from the cave at its base to here?"

It was honestly the best theory I had, even if it didn't address... the thing downstairs.

I shivered slightly, still thrown by the thing. Had it been some kind of animatronic? Or some projection? Or...

Was it actually a monster?

I gripped the doll in my pocket, finding a simple sort of comfort in the small toy. Something so simple, it seemed kind of silly in this situation.

I took a deep breath, getting to my feet and looking up at the tall, heavy door in front of me.

"Well, if I wanna get out of here, I need to keep moving." I muttered, looking back at the sword in ground.

It was so strange... it looked so familiar. I know I've seen this before... hell, this whole place had this strange nostalgia to it.

"Focus." I chastised myself softly. "History studies can happen later."

I put both hands on the door, pushing it open with a grunt of exertion, the rusted old hinges resisting the motion, but eventually I looked in at the large hall, another door at the end of the large chamber.

"This place... I suppose it could have been a mess hall, for the inmates." I said, looking around as I walked forward. "Big enough for it, even if there aren't any-"

I was interrupted by a loud crashing noise, and the impact of something landing in front of me, the rush of air and suddenly shaking of the ground knocking me back onto the cobbled floor.

I looked up, and my eyes went wide as I saw the thing from downstairs, looking down at me from a towering height, a giant hammer-looking thing in its stubby arms as its bulbous body shook, the creature roaring at me.

I needed... I needed to...

"Move!"

I rolled to the side, the female voice from before seeming to come from within and without, but the adrenaline started churning through me as I saw the hammer come down hard on the ground I had just been lying on.

This thing was going to kill me...

I grit my teeth, turning and running back the way I came, trying to make some distance and get to the door, but the damn thing had closed again... and there weren't any handles on the inside.

This... this was a trap?!

I span just in time to avoid another terrifying slam from the hammer, this one destroying a pillar near the entrance, causing brick and rubble to fall down into the room.

Shit, shit, shit...

I ran around another pillar, breath catching in my throat as the hammer came even closer to ending my life, the monster growling as it began to lose patience with its prey. The creature seemed to float of the ground, hovering by its small, impossible wings before lunging forward, nearly catching me again as it twisted around and slammed it hammer all around, trying to catch me with a random flail.

I needed to get out... I needed to escape...

But escape was impossible. There was no way out of here, the trap had been sprung. This thing wanted me dead, and nothing I could do would stop it.

Was I... going to die here?

In this horrible place...? So far from home, so far from the people I care about, no one knowing how I died?

...was I okay with that?

"No." I muttered, eyes turning to the creature, staring at it, meeting its gaze evenly. "No, I refuse to... refuse to die here!"

The creature seemed to understand the shift in attitude, and let out a roar of challenge, pulling its hammer back to slam it down into my frail, small body, before a glint of metal in the soft, cloud covered sunlight made my gaze swing up.

The knight from before, falling from the broken second floor, a sword in hand as with a triumphant yell, he landed on the back of the creature, driving his blade hilt deep into its back.

The monster roared and flailed, shaking and twisting as it tried to dislodge the painful new threat, sending the knight skidding away across the ground, his sword still stuck in the creatures back, and his shield bouncing away into open space.

The low growl from the creature ripping my attention back to it, but it had lost interest in me, now solely focused on the shaky, dazed knight that had hurt it, hefting its hammer as focused its beady red eyes.

I thought about it for only a moment, before I sprinted over to the shield, already thinking how stupid this was, how this could only end badly, how this was going hurt badly.

But I couldn't sit back and watch someone who had saved me twice now, be crushed to death by this thing.

I raced over to him, gripping the shield as I strapped it to my arm, taking a shaky breath as I stared at the creature, the new threat entering its vision causing a slight pause as it reevaluated its prey.

I stood my ground, shaking slightly as I gripped the shield, hearing the shuffling of the knight behind me, soft groans as he tried to get it together, but it wouldn't be fast enough. And even if it was... what could he do?

What could I do?

The beast rushed forward, a roar shaking my bones as it swung its hammer toward me, and I was incredibly thankful that it had swing it sideways.

"Not very smart, huh?" I muttered, before bracing myself and taking the swing on the shield.

I let out a choked up cry as I hurtled through the air, feeling the shield crumple and fly off my arm as the bone in it snapped like a twig, and I desperately tried to force down the tears and sobs of pain as I impacted on the hard ground, skidding along it before rolling to a stop.

But I have to get up. I need to move... if I don't, it'll just move on to the knight...

I forced myself up, turning my pained cries into a shout of what I hoped where challenging barks.

"Tha... That all you got?!" I shouted out, forcing myself up to my feet, my arm screaming in pain as it hung limply at my side. "I... I can... you..."

My thoughts were slowing down, the pain was so much, so so much...

The creature turned to me, eyes burning rubies of anger and rage as it roared at me, clearly not understanding my words, but my intent certainly reached it. It readied its hammer again, the muscles of the deformed creature rippling as it hefted the huge hunt of metal.

I guess... this is it...

I tried to think of a way out of this... tried to think of anything I could do... but my mind came up with nothing.

I lost. There was nothing I could do.

I closed my eyes, ready to at least accept I'd helped one person to escape, or at least survive to fight himself, and my non-broken arm sank into my pocket, clutching the warm doll.

I felt that strange comfort fill my body, my mind, my soul. It just felt... right. Like I was exactly where I belonged.

"...then are you content to let this be the end?"

I opened my eyes, seeing not the strange prison, not my impending death, but an endless expanse of black. My feet touching ground, yet nothing was there to support them. All around... nothing but an endless dark expanse.

"...hello?" I asked, looking for the soft, female voice. "Where... am I?"

The dark seemed to shift and stir, and I felt a warm presence behind me. As I turned, the nothing gave way to a soft, floating light. So warm, so calming... a white, flicking flame of... me.

"What is this?" I muttered, walking up to it and running my fingers through it, feeling the warm flames of... something. "What... where am I?"

A soft chuckle startled me, but before I could move, a dainty, pale hand reached past me, sliding over my hand and threading their fingers through mine, both our touches melding into one.

I didn't turn. It didn't feel... right, to turn. To see who this was... who's voice was resonating within me.

"Do you wish to survive?" She asked me softly, her breath in my ear, and without words, I nodded.

The fire grew, the pure white fading, giving way to a silver, hungry flame that seemed to twist the dark around it.

"Even if it means... living as a cursed being?" She asked, her tone suddenly a sad whisper.

I paused, before closing my eyes. A cursed being? What did she mean by that...?

But that sadness... I could feel her loneliness, the tone of her voice, the grip of her hand...

"...if I am not alone, I can bear that curse." I told her softly, my voice kind, as I twisted my hand around to grip hers tightly.

I felt more than heard her intake of breath, before she laughed softly.

"I see..." She muttered, before I felt a spark of pain in my chest. "Then drink deep. Let your soul be reborn in these flames..."

I could feel it. The silver flames growing, growing, both in front of me and within my chest, burning away everything in their path. They hungered, and I was their fuel, their substance.

No... I refuse...

I grit my teeth and shoved my hand deeper into the flame, not noticing the sudden vanishing of the woman's presence, and felt the flames try to consume me, try to subjugate me.

"I... refuse..." I growled aloud, my eyes narrow as they shifted from blue to silver, then back again. "This is... my soul. Nothing will take it from me!"

The conviction, as suddenly as it came, left me drained as I slumped forward, the flames suddenly settling, receding into a compact, small sphere of flame. I... did it?

But even as I let out a breath of relief, I felt another spark of pain. The dark parted, and I saw sparks of lightning race around me, trapping me in a cage of golden light.

"Wha-" I barely had enough time to let out a gasp before the painful arcs shot forward, piercing into my soul over and over, and I screamed out in pain, collapsing to my knees as my body convulsed with a thousand volts.

It hurts... it hurts it hurts it hurtsithurtsithurtsithurst-

I let out a gasp, my eyes flashing golden as I felt the silver flames roar up around me, angry, vengeful, hungry.

So... so hungry...

I felt that need, that desire to consume, to devour...

And suddenly, the lightning didn't stand a chance.

Just as suddenly as it came, the cage vanished, the arcs of golden light consumed by the growing flames, the pain fading into a distant memory as the power, the raw power and energy of this light filled every limb in my body, my face lighting up into a grin as I got to my feet.

The soul settled in front of me, the silver flames crackling with soft lightning as it rested, and I felt a distant, satisfied presence in the dark before I suddenly felt cold, hard reality return to me.

I blinked, my arm throbbing in pain and the cold air of the prison cutting through me as the monster in front of me raised its hammer high, ready to crush me into past against the ground.

But this time, I didn't feel fear.

Behind my glasses, my blue eyes shifted to blinding gold as I raised my non-broken arm, feeling that swelling, brilliant power building inside me, bit by bit, until it rushed out of me in a moment.

I blinked as the sky opened up, my power rushing up into the clouds as a sudden, crackling bolt of lightning arced down, racing toward the sword still impaled in the creatures back like a lightning rod, and drilled into it.

The creature let out a pained roar, shuddering and shaking under the power of the golden light, but it stayed upright, glaring at me with pure hatred, disgust, and rage.

I felt my own face twist into a snarl, my hand curling as I felt anger rise inside my soul.

"Fall to ashes!" I roared, shoving everything I had into the sudden surge of power, the stream of lightning from the heavens doubling, then tripling, as the smell of seared, rancid flesh filled every corner of the room, the pained roar of the creature gave way to pitiful cries of agony, and its hammer dropped to the ground with a definitive thud.

I lowered my hand, the world suddenly spinning, my body collapsing forward onto my knees.

I... I did it...

I felt myself pitch forward, vaguely seeing the creature slowly fade away into a collection of white mist... of souls...

But before I could impact on the ground, a cold gauntlet-clad hand gripped my shoulder.

"Easy friend... I've got you..."

I tried to turn, to see the knight I had saved, to smile at him, to thank him maybe... or something...

But the darkness encroached on my sight, and with a sigh, silence and peace took my weary, exhausted mind and body.

* * *

_**AN: And that's a wrap for Chapter 1: Light. A pretty long chapter, for my standards anyway, and this took a long time to get right. This is actually the third draft for this chapter, I've spent a lot of time thinking this over, and yes. It is quite different from chapter 1 of Born Anew. **_

_**But... that's kind of the point of a reboot, no?**_

_**Again, huge thanks to everyone who followed and reviewed, you guys give me the motivation to keep writing.**_

_**Remember to tell me what you thought, and thank you for reading!**_


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